(Re)organising Spontaneity
Organisational Practices of the Candlelight Vigil in South Korea
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3757327 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ji Eun Ahn (0009-0008-4049-5251, University of Edinburgh), Ji-Eun Ahn (University of Edinburgh, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Publication date | 2025-07-29 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | American Behavioral Scientist (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0002-7642 • E-ISSN: 1552-3381 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/00027642251357693 |
| OpenAlex | W4412730196 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 33 |
This article aims to explore how the relational dynamics between the traditional social movement organisations (SMOs) and the newly emerged networks of individual participants influence the institutionalisation of 'Candlelight Vigil ( Chotbuljipoe )' as a predominant repertoire of contention in South Korea. Candlelight vigils, which generally appear in a peace demonstration or a memorial ceremony, have been established as a routinised form of public protest in South Korea since the early 2000s. Notably, the mobilisation of the Candlelight Vigil is not based on centralised, rigid and hierarchic organisations like traditional trade unions, student groups or civic organisations but more on decentralised, flexible and horizontal networks via the Internet. Moreover, the participants were inclined to reject control by or identification with one central organisation, and instead sought to construct the meaning of their actions spontaneously through both online and offline fora. However, if we excessively emphasise only the novelty of online mobilisation in the Candlelight Vigils, we could overlook the dynamic interactions between conventional well-established organisations and online-based networks. For instance, once the rally was spontaneously suggested on the Internet, the conventional SMOs which had been engaging in divergent issues immediately launched formal cross-sector coalitional organisations for the Candlelight Vigils in a few days. Drawing on in-depth interviews of individual participants and SMO activists in two cases of the Candlelight Vigils, respectively, occurred in 2008 and 2016 to 17, this article has shown that the Candlelight Vigils generated organisational practices across two different modes of mobilisation, the conventional mode led by well-organised activists and the novel mode initiated by unorganised participants, which allowed both sides to learn how to find a middle ground between 'institutionalisation' and 'stagnation
Geography · Political science · Sociology · Vigil · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Japanese History and Culture · Religion and Society Interactions
From mobilization to revolution
The Logic of Connective Action
Repertoires and cycles of collective action
Challenging the political order
The Consequences of Social Movements for Each Other
From Battles to Buggies
Twitter and Tear Gas
Reflections on #Occupy Everywhere
Threat (And Opportunity)
The Cement of Civil Society
Clandestine Political Violence
Power in Movement
Internet activism transforming street politics
Coalitions and Political Context
Successful Qualitative Research
Seeing Blue
Radicalization
Eventful Protest, Global Conflicts
How social movements can save democracy
The Concept of Social Movement
A New Way of Doing Politics ? Global Justice Movements and the Cultural Logic of Networking
Social Movement Spillover
Occupying the Political
Everyday Readers and Social Movements
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |